GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Battling through the blistering Florida heat, the No. 5 Wake Forest women’s soccer team (7-0-0, 0-0-0 ACC) secured its second ranked victory of the season over the No. 21 Florida Gators  (4-2-1, SEC 0-0-0), Sunday afternoon at Ronald R. Dizney Stadium.

With today’s win, the Demon Deacons remain unbeaten against ranked opponents this season, and move to 3-0 against SEC opponents: No. 16 LSU (2-0), South Carolina (3-0) and No. 21 Florida (2-1). Since 2021, Wake Forest is 7-1-1 against SEC foe in regular season competition.

Today’s win also marked the first program victory over the Gators, with the series record dating back to 1996. 

Wake Forest struck first, with redshirt-junior Sierra Sythe extending her scoring streak with the opening goal in the 15th minute. As the two teams pushed on, Florida broke through in the 58th minute to tie the contest. 

The Demon Deacons would again turn to Sythe in the 80th minute, as a foul in the box drawn by grad student forward Henley Tippins set the Deacs up for a penalty kick. Sythe drained the ball deep, converting her third straight-PK of the season and giving Wake Forest the one-goal advantage. 

The defense persevered, holding on to defeat the Gators and earn their second road win of the season, as well as an unbeaten non-conference record. 

Headlined by sophomore defender Taylor Maxwell, the Wake Forest backline was once again a standout piece of the game. Maxwell defended well across the field, making some incredible blocks in front of and inside the box.

All four members of the Deacs’ defense went the full 90, including two members of the midfield. 

Sythe’s two goals against Florida marked her first career brace. Additionally, she has tallied five goals and 11 points in the past four games, and has converted all three of the Demon Deacons’ penalty kicks. 

How It Happened 


Wake Forest recorded the first off-target shot of the afternoon in the fifth minute, with sophomore forward Allie Flanagan putting an attempt high of the net. 
Senior midfielder Dempsey Brown made a fantastic block in the front of the box two minutes later, before the Gators could attack on net. 

Redshirt-junior defender Sierra Sythe followed in the 11th minute, taking a ball to the chest to clear it out of the zone and regain possession. 


The Demon Deacons took a 1-0 lead in the 15th minute, with captain Sythe draining a strike on the right of the net.

While the goal was unassisted, sophomore midfielder Riley Cross took the corner to set up the Deacs to score. 


The Gators retaliated, sending a cross towards redshirt-junior goalkeeper Valentina Amaral, which she deflected. Sophomore defender Taylor Maxwell followed up to clear the rebound from danger.
Florida recorded its third shot of the match in the 31st minute, but was deflected off of the crossbar. 
Wake Forest maintained pressure on the Gators, as junior midfielder Lola Ressler tallied a shot in the 37th minute, wide of the net. 
In the 40th minute, T. Maxwell made another key block in the box, using her body to deflect the attempt away. 
Florida had a slight edge on the Demon Deacons at the break, with possession and shots in favor of the Gators 55 to 45 percent and 5-4 shots. 
The Gators tied the contest in the 58th minute. 
Tippins bounced back in the same minute with a shot, but went off the post. 
Wake Forest was pushed hard into its defending zone, as Florida threw an off-target shot high in the 67th minute. 
Sophomore forward Kylie Maxwell tallied a shot on goal in the 77th minute.
The Demon Deacons regained the lead in the 80th minute, with a converted penalty kick from Sythe.

Sythe has now converted all the Deacs’ PKs, and marks her third-straight this season. 


Wake Forest’s defense fought into the final minutes, as the Deacs prevailed 2-1 over the Gators. 

Demon Deacon Details to Note


Redshirt-junior Sierra Sythe extended her goal and point streak to four games with her strike in the 15th minute.


In four games, Sythe has five goals and 11 points. 


Sythe marked her first career brace with her goal in the 80th minute. 

Additionally, the defender has converted all of the Demon Deacon’s penalty kicks of the season. 


Graduate student forward Henley Tippins made her 75th career start. 
Sophomore midfielder Riley Cross and defender Taylor Maxwell made their 15th career start. 
Sophomore forward Kylie Maxwell made her 25th career start. 
Sythe, Brown, Tippins, Cross, Maxwell and Wiemann went the full 90.

From Coach da Luz 
“Florida challenged us today in every way. The heat and humidity were unbearable, and somehow our team gutted out a huge road win. The Gators are a good team, so this win will mean a lot down the road. 
Taylor Maxwell was our standout defender today, her 1v1 defense was an inspiration for our team. 
Henley Tippins was also critical to the win, and had a major presence and influence. Dempsey Brown was the ultimate team player filling in at center back all weekend. Amaya Dawkins and Riley Cross ran their socks off in midfield. Sierra Sythe was so special, she is a winner and leads this team every game! I’m so proud of the whole group for a 7-0 non-con record. Now ACC awaits! Go Deacs!”

Up Next

The Demon Deacons head back home to open the ACC slate, beginning with No. 12 Virginia Cavaliers, this Saturday, Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. The contest will be streamed on ACCNX with live stats available here.